Hess (NYSE:HES) Research Coverage Started at StockNews.com

StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Hess (NYSE:HES) in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning. The firm issued a hold rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Pickering Energy Partners upgraded Hess to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Hess from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $151.00 to $193.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. UBS Group increased their target price on Hess from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on Hess from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.60.

Hess Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HES opened at $143.79 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $44.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.98 and a beta of 1.21. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $144.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $140.10. Hess has a one year low of $123.79 and a one year high of $163.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

Hess (NYSE:HES) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.32. Hess had a return on equity of 26.32% and a net margin of 21.27%. Analysts anticipate that Hess will post 8.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hess Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.39%. Hess’s payout ratio is presently 22.22%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hess

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Hess by 58.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,753,126 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $509,675,000 after purchasing an additional 1,391,311 shares in the last quarter. HBK Investments L P increased its holdings in Hess by 16.7% during the 3rd quarter. HBK Investments L P now owns 7,117,820 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $966,600,000 after purchasing an additional 1,017,720 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in Hess by 46.3% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,930,509 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $389,787,000 after purchasing an additional 927,093 shares in the last quarter. Symmetry Investments LP increased its holdings in Hess by 154.1% during the 4th quarter. Symmetry Investments LP now owns 1,381,076 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $183,697,000 after purchasing an additional 837,662 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Hess by 31.0% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,318,822 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $450,696,000 after purchasing an additional 785,270 shares in the last quarter. 88.51% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Hess

Hess Corporation, an exploration and production company, explores, develops, produces, purchases, transports, and sells crude oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and natural gas. The company operates in two segments, Exploration and Production, and Midstream. It conducts production operations primarily in the United States, Guyana, the Malaysia/Thailand Joint Development Area, and Malaysia; and exploration activities principally offshore Guyana, the U.S.